I found my stockpile of slingblades the other day, and decided to see which one was the best. I put them all to the same tasks, and have compiled all my findings so that you'll have an idea of what's the best value. Without further adieu, here's the review and test of every machete I own.
Criteria To reach some sort of standard, all blades must be 18" long. All machetes were gauged based on price, initial sharpness, ease of resharpening, quality, and overall value. All were given the same testing criteria that you would expect of a machete: clearing brush, cutting light wood, and chopping small to medium-sized branches. I rank them here based on how they performed for me.
Ozark Trail Machete: The machete you buy from Wal-Mart for $7. Made in China. It comes with an OD green sheath (nylon) that has a 2" wide belt loop. The handles were black plastic. The blade was coated with black paint that came off easily. This was of average sharpness for a machete, but couldn't be resharpened without chipping the blade. Cutting brush was uneventful, but the handle size made it awkward to swing because it was too small for my hands. The blade chipped only two swings into my 2X4 target. And it was bent. Straightening in a vice fixed the problem until the next swing. Don't buy this piece of crap.
Cold Steel Latin Machete: The model number on this one is 97AM18. It will cost you about $10 in stores. This machete has a black plastic handle molded to the blade, and has a black coating. No sheath included. A lanyard hole is in the butt of the handle. The blade is made of 1055 carbon steel. The blade was dull off the shelf, but was brought to a nice edge in about 10 minutes. The factory edge was adequate for chopping, but clearing bruash proven to be too dull. The blade required a sharper edge for grasses and light wood. With heavy wood (3" diameter), the blade bent slightly and chipped in one spot. The bend was fixed in a vice, and stayed straight with thinner woods. The chip couldn't be "sharpened out" so it stayed. The 2X4 was uncomfortable to chop due to the handle being grooved too aggressively. Still, it was cut in half with no more chipping and minimal bending. If Cold Steel fixed the handle to not be so irritating, this would be a great clearing tool.
Ontario Military Issue Machete: Model number ON18. NSN on this is 5110-00-813-1286. No sheath included with this one either. The blade is 1095 carbon steel, and is .125" thick. This one also has a black coating, and has a somewhat diamond shine to it. The handle is a dark brown flame-resistant thermoplastic, and is hedl in place with three rivets. There's a lanyard hole in the butt. Initial sharpness was pretty good, and was brought to a sharp edge in a few minutes.
Computer has to shut down. I'll continue the review when I'm back on-line. Sorry for the inconvenience, guys :-(
Criteria To reach some sort of standard, all blades must be 18" long. All machetes were gauged based on price, initial sharpness, ease of resharpening, quality, and overall value. All were given the same testing criteria that you would expect of a machete: clearing brush, cutting light wood, and chopping small to medium-sized branches. I rank them here based on how they performed for me.
Ozark Trail Machete: The machete you buy from Wal-Mart for $7. Made in China. It comes with an OD green sheath (nylon) that has a 2" wide belt loop. The handles were black plastic. The blade was coated with black paint that came off easily. This was of average sharpness for a machete, but couldn't be resharpened without chipping the blade. Cutting brush was uneventful, but the handle size made it awkward to swing because it was too small for my hands. The blade chipped only two swings into my 2X4 target. And it was bent. Straightening in a vice fixed the problem until the next swing. Don't buy this piece of crap.
Cold Steel Latin Machete: The model number on this one is 97AM18. It will cost you about $10 in stores. This machete has a black plastic handle molded to the blade, and has a black coating. No sheath included. A lanyard hole is in the butt of the handle. The blade is made of 1055 carbon steel. The blade was dull off the shelf, but was brought to a nice edge in about 10 minutes. The factory edge was adequate for chopping, but clearing bruash proven to be too dull. The blade required a sharper edge for grasses and light wood. With heavy wood (3" diameter), the blade bent slightly and chipped in one spot. The bend was fixed in a vice, and stayed straight with thinner woods. The chip couldn't be "sharpened out" so it stayed. The 2X4 was uncomfortable to chop due to the handle being grooved too aggressively. Still, it was cut in half with no more chipping and minimal bending. If Cold Steel fixed the handle to not be so irritating, this would be a great clearing tool.
Ontario Military Issue Machete: Model number ON18. NSN on this is 5110-00-813-1286. No sheath included with this one either. The blade is 1095 carbon steel, and is .125" thick. This one also has a black coating, and has a somewhat diamond shine to it. The handle is a dark brown flame-resistant thermoplastic, and is hedl in place with three rivets. There's a lanyard hole in the butt. Initial sharpness was pretty good, and was brought to a sharp edge in a few minutes.
Computer has to shut down. I'll continue the review when I'm back on-line. Sorry for the inconvenience, guys :-(
)
